Greetings & Happy New Year!
Eventually, each & every one of us will make a decision during a performance that will affect the rest of our career...
I was 16 years old when I booked my first theater show. It was at The Blue Room Theater in downtown chico. To promote the show I set up a massive publicity stunt: A straitjacket escape that took place while hanging 50 feet in the air... in front of hundreds of people. The stunt & my following theater engagement were a huge success. I even gained some national press for the escape.
About a week after my run at the Blue Room had ended I received a call from the Butte County Sheriff's office. They were holding a huge fundraiser at the fairgrounds - it was a massive dinner & magic show; there was well over 800 people who would be in attendance. The Sheriffs office was bringing in a few magicians from out of town: Doug Malloy & Charles & Bobby Peters. They wanted me to be a part of the show & to provide the finale for the evening. Coming off of the success of my strait-jacket escape & theater show, I was confident to say the least... OK I was a little cocky. I challenged the Butte County Sherif to an escape. I challenged him to lock me up on stage using his own cuffs & equipment... as many pairs of cuffs as he dared - & he accepted.
At the time, I was obsessed with Houdini & I took the challenge very seriously. I had about a month to prepare - I had several pairs of police issue handcuffs. I would have myself handcuffed in the most insanely awkward positions & I would FORCE myself to escape via manipulating a key that I had hidden in the lining of my boxers. This certainly wasn't easy & I learned a lot about what my limits were. During the course of my preparations I ordered a very cool gimmicked padlock that opens without a key & at the last minute I decided that I would bring the padlock & a length of chain for the Sheriff (in addition to the restraints that he was planning on using).
The performance day came fast & I was confident. The fairgrounds auditorium was packed & the show began. Doug was the MC for the evening - he performed for a while & then introduced Charles & Bobbi Peters. They performed their act & then I was introduced for the first part of my set. I commanded the stage as I performed a 15 minute excerpt from my theater show - it went over fantastic. What a show!
Doug was up again for a while & again Charles & Bobbi... Eventually the time came for the finale. I walked up to the microphone & again greeted the audience. I explained the challenge & then introduced the Butte County Sheriff & 2 of his deputies. They came out onstage carrying various handcuffs, leg-cuffs & other restraints. The escape began: I took off my shirt & was then thoroughly searched by the Sheriff... He didn't find any of the 5 keys that I had hidden on my person. I had cleared the first hurdle.
Next the restraints. The Sheriff asked me to sit on my knees. Him & his deputies cuffed my hands with 2 pairs of cuffs behind my back. Two pairs of leg-cuffs were then placed on my ankles & a third pair was used to lock my hands to my feet. I was essentially hog tied. Next I instructed the Sheriff to take a length of heavy chain & a Masterlock (my gimmicked padlock) & to use it any way he wished. The chain was wrapped around me & locked... I think they also used some Duct Tape
A small enclosure made out of PVC pipe & cloth was then lowered over me & the escape began. I got to one of my keys right away & began working to open the cuffs. It wasn't easy & after a few minutes I realized that my wrists were bleeding. I kept going & slowly - inch by inch - I gained access to the pair of cuffs that were keeping my ankles locked to my wrists.
I dropped the key... I couldn't reach it.
I had to start over - fortunately I had planned for this. I had another key hidden in my mouth. I twisted my body so that I could drop the key from my mouth into my hands. It worked - I was back on track. I got the part of the first pair of cuffs unlocked - I was no longer fully hog-tied. I was then able to remove one of the cuffs around my hands & another set from around my ankles. I was close to success but my chain & gimmicked padlock were in the way & preventing me from reaching the final cuffs. I struggled - it was a gimmicked padlock... all I need to do was to turn the cylindar with my fingernail...
I couldn't reach it.
I heard Doung Malloy walk up to the enclosure & ask if I was OK... "Yes, just give me another minute." 5 minutes passed. My wrists were bleeding & I had lost all feeling in my right hand. My arm had also gone numb. Doug came back & we had to call it. The enclosure was lifted & there I stood in the spotlight in front of a thousand people. Cuffed & broken. Blood flowing down my wrists.
I had managed to get to a standing position by the end, but I was not free - not by any stretch of the imagination. I stood there & watched as they audience cheered. Perhaps because they felt sorry - perhaps because I was the local "hometown hero."
The Sheriff walked over & unlocked the rest of the cuffs. The show was over. I stood there in the middle of the stage & had to endure the handful of people who came over to congratulate me anyway.
Nothing that I could ever write can describe the feeling of sheer failure in front of a thousand people. It was humiliating. What's worse is that if I had stuck to my original plans - the escape would have been made. At the last minute I threw in a gimmicked padlock that I hadn't practiced with & that was my downfall.
This was a life changing performance for me. I learned a lot about preparation, about ego, & about performance... but the most important thing that I learned was what it felt like to completely fail in front of an audience. The fear of failure is what keeps us from succeeding at much in our lives. I learned how it felt to fail & instead of hanging my head & feeling sorry for myself - I became determined to use what I had learned to my advantage.
The way I approach stunts & performances has forever been changed by that event. The next year I went on to successfully complete a similar escape - I had incorporated what I had learned from my earlier failure - I was prepared for EVERYTHING. Without the experience of failing in such a huge way, I wouldn't be the performer that I am today. The milestones that happen within our lives - both the successes & the failures - are key to making us who we are... however, ultimately it is up to YOU how these milestones will affect you.
My Dad taught me something when I was younger: When you have a goal that you are reaching toward, pay close attention to the things that you do that get you closer to your goal & the things you do that get you further from your goal. If you CONTINUE to do the things that get you closer & STOP doing the things that get you further - eventually you WILL reach your goal. It may take some time & it won't always be easy, but it will come.
That was a performance that changed my life. I want to hear about yours. It doesn't have to be a performance, it could be an unrelated event, but what moments in your life have changed you as a performer? What did you learn & how did you learn it? I look forward to reading your replies.
_
Eventually, each & every one of us will make a decision during a performance that will affect the rest of our career...
I was 16 years old when I booked my first theater show. It was at The Blue Room Theater in downtown chico. To promote the show I set up a massive publicity stunt: A straitjacket escape that took place while hanging 50 feet in the air... in front of hundreds of people. The stunt & my following theater engagement were a huge success. I even gained some national press for the escape.
About a week after my run at the Blue Room had ended I received a call from the Butte County Sheriff's office. They were holding a huge fundraiser at the fairgrounds - it was a massive dinner & magic show; there was well over 800 people who would be in attendance. The Sheriffs office was bringing in a few magicians from out of town: Doug Malloy & Charles & Bobby Peters. They wanted me to be a part of the show & to provide the finale for the evening. Coming off of the success of my strait-jacket escape & theater show, I was confident to say the least... OK I was a little cocky. I challenged the Butte County Sherif to an escape. I challenged him to lock me up on stage using his own cuffs & equipment... as many pairs of cuffs as he dared - & he accepted.
At the time, I was obsessed with Houdini & I took the challenge very seriously. I had about a month to prepare - I had several pairs of police issue handcuffs. I would have myself handcuffed in the most insanely awkward positions & I would FORCE myself to escape via manipulating a key that I had hidden in the lining of my boxers. This certainly wasn't easy & I learned a lot about what my limits were. During the course of my preparations I ordered a very cool gimmicked padlock that opens without a key & at the last minute I decided that I would bring the padlock & a length of chain for the Sheriff (in addition to the restraints that he was planning on using).
The performance day came fast & I was confident. The fairgrounds auditorium was packed & the show began. Doug was the MC for the evening - he performed for a while & then introduced Charles & Bobbi Peters. They performed their act & then I was introduced for the first part of my set. I commanded the stage as I performed a 15 minute excerpt from my theater show - it went over fantastic. What a show!
Doug was up again for a while & again Charles & Bobbi... Eventually the time came for the finale. I walked up to the microphone & again greeted the audience. I explained the challenge & then introduced the Butte County Sheriff & 2 of his deputies. They came out onstage carrying various handcuffs, leg-cuffs & other restraints. The escape began: I took off my shirt & was then thoroughly searched by the Sheriff... He didn't find any of the 5 keys that I had hidden on my person. I had cleared the first hurdle.
Next the restraints. The Sheriff asked me to sit on my knees. Him & his deputies cuffed my hands with 2 pairs of cuffs behind my back. Two pairs of leg-cuffs were then placed on my ankles & a third pair was used to lock my hands to my feet. I was essentially hog tied. Next I instructed the Sheriff to take a length of heavy chain & a Masterlock (my gimmicked padlock) & to use it any way he wished. The chain was wrapped around me & locked... I think they also used some Duct Tape
A small enclosure made out of PVC pipe & cloth was then lowered over me & the escape began. I got to one of my keys right away & began working to open the cuffs. It wasn't easy & after a few minutes I realized that my wrists were bleeding. I kept going & slowly - inch by inch - I gained access to the pair of cuffs that were keeping my ankles locked to my wrists.
I dropped the key... I couldn't reach it.
I had to start over - fortunately I had planned for this. I had another key hidden in my mouth. I twisted my body so that I could drop the key from my mouth into my hands. It worked - I was back on track. I got the part of the first pair of cuffs unlocked - I was no longer fully hog-tied. I was then able to remove one of the cuffs around my hands & another set from around my ankles. I was close to success but my chain & gimmicked padlock were in the way & preventing me from reaching the final cuffs. I struggled - it was a gimmicked padlock... all I need to do was to turn the cylindar with my fingernail...
I couldn't reach it.
I heard Doung Malloy walk up to the enclosure & ask if I was OK... "Yes, just give me another minute." 5 minutes passed. My wrists were bleeding & I had lost all feeling in my right hand. My arm had also gone numb. Doug came back & we had to call it. The enclosure was lifted & there I stood in the spotlight in front of a thousand people. Cuffed & broken. Blood flowing down my wrists.
I had managed to get to a standing position by the end, but I was not free - not by any stretch of the imagination. I stood there & watched as they audience cheered. Perhaps because they felt sorry - perhaps because I was the local "hometown hero."
The Sheriff walked over & unlocked the rest of the cuffs. The show was over. I stood there in the middle of the stage & had to endure the handful of people who came over to congratulate me anyway.
Nothing that I could ever write can describe the feeling of sheer failure in front of a thousand people. It was humiliating. What's worse is that if I had stuck to my original plans - the escape would have been made. At the last minute I threw in a gimmicked padlock that I hadn't practiced with & that was my downfall.
This was a life changing performance for me. I learned a lot about preparation, about ego, & about performance... but the most important thing that I learned was what it felt like to completely fail in front of an audience. The fear of failure is what keeps us from succeeding at much in our lives. I learned how it felt to fail & instead of hanging my head & feeling sorry for myself - I became determined to use what I had learned to my advantage.
The way I approach stunts & performances has forever been changed by that event. The next year I went on to successfully complete a similar escape - I had incorporated what I had learned from my earlier failure - I was prepared for EVERYTHING. Without the experience of failing in such a huge way, I wouldn't be the performer that I am today. The milestones that happen within our lives - both the successes & the failures - are key to making us who we are... however, ultimately it is up to YOU how these milestones will affect you.
My Dad taught me something when I was younger: When you have a goal that you are reaching toward, pay close attention to the things that you do that get you closer to your goal & the things you do that get you further from your goal. If you CONTINUE to do the things that get you closer & STOP doing the things that get you further - eventually you WILL reach your goal. It may take some time & it won't always be easy, but it will come.
That was a performance that changed my life. I want to hear about yours. It doesn't have to be a performance, it could be an unrelated event, but what moments in your life have changed you as a performer? What did you learn & how did you learn it? I look forward to reading your replies.
_
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